Sleigh shovel with folding extension

ABSTRACT

A manually operated sleigh shovel ( 20 ) including a sleigh ( 22 ) and a push bar ( 24 ) attached to the sleigh, a folding extension ( 26 ), and means to pull up and lock the extension for loading, transportation and evacuation of material including snow. The swiveling of the extension is from bottom to top and inversely around a hinge ( 28 ) describing an angle originating from the meeting point of the sleigh and the extension and it can be activated by means of a pulling device, after unlocking a handle ( 32 ) which pulls on a cable ( 25 ). A lever ( 50 ) is equipped with a stopper ( 51 ) which allows the positioning of the folding extension at 180° to load the snow, at 90° to transport it, at 180° to unload it and at 270° to scrape while moving back.

DOMAIN

This invention is related to the domain of shovels and of manually operated forks, particularly manually operated sleigh shovels.

PRIOR ART

Generally, shoveling snow is done with a regular shovel, a plow or a sleigh shovel. The latter comprises a handle, on which one puts both hands side to side, and a sleigh. Conventional sleigh shovels are used by pushing the handle in a forward manner and directing the bottom of the sleigh under the snow. Once the snow is loaded, one pushes the handle towards the ground to make sure the snow does not get out of the sleigh, hence, giving the latitude to move and put the snow where wanted by raising the handle back up. The sleigh shovel has the advantage over regular shovels and plows to charge bigger loads of snow but the main disadvantage resides in the fact that the user must bend with each charging movement and also the unloading of the snow. My invention greatly limits the disadvantage mentioned above by introducing a manually operated means to open and close the sleigh.

A search uncovered the following patents:

-   U.S. Pat. No. 4,302,894 presents a dumping shovel on wheels usable     standing up including ways to unload the snow -   U.S. Pat. No. 6,675,507 B2 presents an articulated shovel equipped     with locking devices -   U.S. Pat. No. 5,074,064 presents an ejecting plate by means of a     tumbling device -   U.S. Pat. No. 6,735,887 presents a manually operated snowplow on     wheels, equipped with a tub and a handle. -   CA 2,111,518 presents a snow shovel equipped with a deflector and a     removable scraper. -   CA 2,228,887 presents a manually operated snowplow on wheels     equipped with a tub and a handle and having the capacity to be     transformed for multiple uses. -   CA 2,401,905 presents a manually operated articulated snow shovel     equipped with a scraper. -   CA 2,382,992 presents a manually operated snowplow on wheels.

OBJECTIVES AND ADVANTAGES

It is a general objective with this invention to provide a way to load snow, keep it in the bucket of a sleigh and to move it without the user having to bend over and without any snow spills.

It is a specific objective to provide a mobile angularly directed scraper installed on the fore end of a sleigh to, first, scoop up the snow, keep it inside the sleigh during transportation and to easily unload it. I also wish to provide a useful device, easily manufactured in large quantity, and easy to install on usual models of sleigh shovels. The invention presents some advantages related with the objectives mentioned.

It is a more specific objective to install on the handle of the sleigh a device to lock in place a mobile angular scraper for the loading, to unlock it to keep it in an upward position, to provide a new stable position, and to unlock it again in a scraping position.

DRAWINGS

Regarding the drawings illustrating an embodiment of the invention

FIG. 1 is a perspective of a shovel with a sleigh

FIGS. 2, 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D represent the opening and closing activation mechanism of the sleigh shovel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the following description and in the related drawings, similar numbers refer to identical parts in the different figures.

FIG. 1 shows a sleigh shovel 20 with the folding extension, composed mainly of a sleigh 22, a push bar 24, and a folding extension 26;

-   -   the sleigh 22, is made of two lateral faces 21, a back face 27,         a bottom 29, forming a receptacle used for loading snow;     -   the push bar 24, folded in 3 parts one of which is a transversal         bar 30 and two longitudinal bars 31 joining the 2 lateral faces         21 of the sleigh to be attached to them;     -   the folding extension 26 located at the fore end of the sleigh.         It pivots from bottom to top around a hinge 28 generating an         angle from 180 degrees at ground level or more once lowered, to         until approximately 90 degrees once pulled up towards the sleigh         to contain the load. Moreover, the folding extension possesses a         rectangular blade 23 normal to lateral studs 42 one of which         having an anchor point 44. The sleigh shovel 20 comprises a         system allowing an up and down movement of the folding extension         by a user by activating an unlocking handle 32 generating the         backward movement of a cable 25 which crosses a sliding collar         45 and a cable support 52 to raise a lever 50. Afterwards, the         user pulls on a pull handle 34 which acts on a retracting bar 36         sliding in a retention U 46; then the sliding collar 45 moves         upwards along the longitudinal bar 31 initializing the upward         movement of the folding extension in a pulled up position         towards the sleigh.

The unlocking process comprises many steps. First, the lever 50 is in a stopped position with its stopper 51 in the lower peg 48. The stopper 51 is raised up to the peg summit 53 or higher, hence allowing to move the sleigh bar 37 and pull with the anchor point 44 the folding extension 26 towards the sleigh in a position said to be closed. In a second position, being the raised peg 49 one can also lock the stopper. Finally, one can even lower the rectangular blade 23 until 270 degrees to use as a scraper to drag the snow while moving back.

The FIG. 2 show the enlarged details of the same elements.

SUMMARY

The invention consist of a manually operated device, used to charge material, particularly snow, and equipped with a means to keep this material inside by way of a folding extension, to move and unload the material at a desired place. The device includes: a sleigh shovel 20, equipped with a sleigh 22, a push bar 24 attached to the sleigh, a folding extension 26 one can pull up towards the sleigh by means of ties and pivots. The ties and pivots means include:

-   -   a hinge 28 from which the folding extension swivels     -   a pull handle 34 acting on a retracting bar 36 articulated on a         sleigh bar 37 attached to an anchor point 44 located on a         lateral stud 42 on the folding extension, which can be pulled up         towards the sleigh to hold back the material when loaded.     -   a locking device intended to hold the retracting bar fixed when         the folding extension is in a loading position.     -   a cable device 25 activated by an unlocking handle 22 intended         to release the sleigh bar 37 to allow retraction to keep the         charge inside, and even to choose any position including lower         than level 0 to scrape while moving back.

The cable device can either lock or unlock the blade by means of a stopper intended to make the folding extension fall to the ground to evacuate the material. The cable device includes an anchor point 44 on the lateral face of the folding extension attaching the blade to the handle. The locking and unlocking means of the folding extension include a pivot 54. A load retention device for a manually operated sleigh shovel equipped with a sleigh and a handle. The sleigh includes side partitions forming a loading opening which includes a lower partition including a loading extremity, the retention device includes:

-   -   a rectangular blade 23 disposed in a pivoting way along the         loading extremity so as to be able to close at least partially         the loading opening with its swiveling, switching from an open         to a closed position, and     -   ways to activate the swiveling motion from a point located near         the handle: so that an operator can push the shovel to take a         load, and activate the swiveling motion of the blade to move the         shovel backwards and keep the load inside. The lower peg 48         allows to lock the blade in an open position and to unlock it to         swivel it to a closed position. The operator can swivel the         blade in a closed position in moving the loaded shovel forward         and stopping abruptly, the load hence pushing the blade in an         open position. In the retention device, the blade is held in a         swiveling way at the extremity by way of hinges 28. The         swiveling motion is activated with a triggering device, the pull         handle 34 is sitting on the lateral bar and attached to the         blade by means of a pair of bars 36, 37 so that pulling on the         trigger leads to the deployment of the blade.

It is understood that the embodiment of the present invention described above, referring to the annexed drawing is indicative but not restrictive in any way, and that modifications and adaptations can be made to the object without deviating from the bounds of the present invention.

Parts List

-   20 Sleigh Shovel 56 Spring -   21 Lateral faces -   22 Sleighs -   23 Rectangular blade -   24 Push Bar -   25 Cable -   26 Folding extension -   27 Back face -   28 Hinge -   29 Bottom -   30 Transversal bar -   31 Longitudinal bar -   32 Unlocking handle -   34 Pull handle -   36 Retracting bar -   37 Sleigh bar -   38 Bar joint -   42 Lateral stud -   44 Anchor point -   45 Sliding collar -   46 Retention U -   48 Lower peg -   49 Raised peg -   50 Lever -   51 Stopper -   52 Cable support -   53 Peg summit -   54 Pivot 

1. A manually operated loading device for material comprising means to retain, move and unload said material at a desired place, said loading device comprising a sleigh shovel (20) including: a sleigh (22) with lateral faces (21) and a back face (27) all at a certain height, said sleigh having an opening at the front; a push bar (24) attached to said sleigh by said back face (27) a folding extension (26) that can be pulled back about a hinge (28) connection, to partially close said opening.
 2. The device of claim 1 wherein said hinge connection means includes: a hinge (28) swiveling at the meeting point between said extension to and said sleigh; a pull handle (34) acting on a retraction bar (36) articulated to a sleigh bar (37) attached to an anchor point (44) located on a lateral stud (42) of said folding extension, said extension being pulled up towards said sleigh to hold the material when loaded; a locking device meant to hold the retracting bar fixed when said folding extension is in a loading position; a cable device (25) activated by an unlocking handle (32) intended to release said sleigh bar (37) to allow retraction to hold the load inside.
 3. The device of claim 2 endowed with both a locking and unlocking device of said blade through a stopping peg and intended so that said folding extension falls towards the ground to evacuate the material.
 4. The device of claim 2 in which said cable system includes an anchor point (44) on the lateral face of the folding extension to said handle.
 5. The device of claim 2 in which locking and unlocking devices of the folding extension include a pivot (54).
 6. A load retention device for a manually operated sleigh shovel endowed with a sleigh and a handle, said sleigh comprising partitions forming a loading opening, including a lower partition comprising a loading extremity, said retention device comprising: a rectangular blade (26) arranged to swivel along said loading extremity to be able to close at least partially said loading opening with its swiveling motion switching from an open to a closed position means to operate said swiveling motion from a point located near said handle, and in so permitting an operator to push said shovel, load it, and activate the folding extension to remove said shovel and keep said load inside.
 7. The retention device of claim 6 includes blocking means allowing to lock said extension in place in an open position and to unlock it when swiveling in a closed position.
 8. The retention device of claim 6 in which an operator can swivel said extension in a closed position in moving said shovel forward and stopping abruptly, said load hence pushing said blade in an open position when discharging.
 9. The retention device of claim 6 in which said extension is held in a swiveling way at said extremity with hinges.
 10. The retention device in claim 6 in which said means to activate said swiveling include an activating trigger on said handle and attached to said extension by means of a cable (25) so that the moving of said activating trigger generates the moving of said cable and consequently the swiveling motion of said extension. 